Prairie Pines Nature Preserve is a special place in northeast Lincoln, Nebraska. Whether you’ve participated in a recent Run 4 The Pines event or remember getting your Christmas tree from its tree farm in the late 1990s, the Pines is one of the ecological gems of Nebraska’s natural spaces. Its 145 acres encompass diverse ecosystems, from woodland and grassland to wetland, and it features 35 acres of trees and shrubs, over 200 woody plant species, 55 acres of native grasses and forbs, and 10 acres of virgin prairie. The new management thing? I’ll get to that.

History of Prairie Pines

What became Prairie Pines was originally a row-crop farm purchased in 1959 by Walter and Virginia Bagley. Walter was a forestry professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and turned the land into the first “choose-and-cut” Christmas tree farm in Nebraska until closing in 2001.

In 1982, Prairie Pines was protected by Nebraska’s first conservation easement. To preserve the land, Walter and his wife offered the area to the Wachiska Audubon Society — of which they were original members — in the early 1990s, but the chapter declined because it wasn’t ready to manage land. The area was then gifted to the University of Nebraska Foundation in 1992 for educational and research purposes. Prairie Pines became a nature preserve managed by the Nebraska Forest Service in 2016 to sustain its habitats through conservation efforts while promoting community engagement with nature. During its adventures, the preserve was also the first home for the Raptor Recovery program.

Present-day Use of the Preserve

Prairie Pines hosts the Community Crops Training Farm on five acres of its property, which supports beginning farmers by providing access to land and resources. It also hosts an annual Run 4 the Pines fundraiser, a four-mile run/walk and a one-mile youth run. Daycare nature walks are held for youngsters with age-appropriate nature and conservation activities, and events such as guided hikes or scavenger hunts are held regularly. Visitors can explore grassed trails in the various habitats within the preserve, while the area serves as a refuge for numerous plant and animal species.

New Management at the Pines

In August 2024, the UN Foundation decided to divest from Prairie Pines and went full circle, offering to give Wachiska Audubon ownership of the preserve. In October, after much discussion, Wachiska accepted the offer. The new management will be by a group of Wachiska members and partners already managing the Pines. Wachiska is considering moving its office to Prairie Pines, and buildings on the site can be used for other ways to introduce people to Wachiska and the experience of Praire Pines.

This is pretty big news, of course, and I buried the lede to remind you (and myself) how environmental conservation and preservation efforts span not only years but generations. Thank you to the Bagleys, the UN Foundation, and Wachiska for caring for this jewel in southeast Nebraska.

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